The judge dipped below a possible sentence that would have sent Knoebel to prison for one year and four months. If convicted at trial she faced five years behind bars.

“I regret everything and I apologize,” Knoebel told the judge, while sitting next to her attorney Dennis B. Schlenker. She apologized to the court, her relatives, her 12-year-old daughter, the state of New York, co-workers and her husband.

Schlenker told the judge that Wendy Knoebel played a passive role in the couple’s marijuana growing operation — an argument the prosecution did not dispute. Schlenker acknowledged the former officer should have known better, but said she is moving on. He highlighted Wendy Knoebel’s successful career in law enforcement, which ended when she resigned from her job at the University at Albany on March 12.

“She made a tragic mistake,” Schlenker said, arguing Wendy Knoebel is needed at home to take care of her daughter. “A sentence of incarceration in this case would be a monumental injustice, not just for Wendy Knoebel but society as well.”